You might not know this, but South Africa actually has 12 medical schools. With so many options, it can be really hard to decide which one you want to attend.

To make it easier for you, we’ve ranked them according to their SCImago Institutions Ranking.

Medical schools in South Africa

All rankings were taken from the SCImago Institutions Ranking website.

1️⃣ University of Cape Town

• According to the SCImago Institutions Ranking, UCT is the best medical school in South Africa, and no. 609 in the world
• Applications for 2024 closed on the 31st of July, 2023
• You can click this link to get the university prospectus to get more info about the university and find out the requirements for every course

2️⃣ University of Witwatersrand

• According to the SCImago Institutions Ranking, Wits is the second-best medical school in South Africa, and no. 1076 in the world
• Applications for 2024 closed on the 30th of June, 2023
• You can click this link to get the university prospectus to get more info about the university and find out the requirements for every course

3️⃣ Stellenbosch University

• According to the SCImago Institutions Ranking, Stellies is the third-best medical school in South Africa, and no. 1282 in the world
• Applications for 2024 closed on the 31st of July, 2023
• You can click this link to get the university prospectus to get more info about the university and find out the requirements for every course

4️⃣ University of KwaZulu-Natal

• According to the SCImago Institutions Ranking, UKZN is the fourth-best medical school in South Africa, and no. 1422 in the world
• You can click this link to get more info on the College of Health Sciences at UKZN

5️⃣ University of Pretoria

• According to the SCImago Institutions Ranking, UP is the fifth-best medical school in South Africa, and no. 1805 in the world
• Applications for 2024 closed on the 30th of June, 2023
• You can click this link to get the university prospectus to get more info about the university and find out the requirements for every course

6️⃣ North-West University

• According to the SCImago Institutions Ranking, NWU is the sixth-best medical school in South Africa, and no. 2695 in the world
• You can click this link to get more info on the Faculty of Health Sciences at NWU

7️⃣ University of Western Cape

• According to the SCImago Institutions Ranking, UWC is the seventh-best medical school in South Africa, and no. 2842 in the world
• You can click this link to get more info on the Faculty of Community and Health Sciences at UWC

8️⃣ University of Fort Hare

• According to the SCImago Institutions Ranking, UFH is the eighth-best medical school in South Africa, and no. 3078 in the world
• You can click this link to get more info on the Faculty of Health Sciences at UFH

9️⃣ Durban University of Technology

• According to the SCImago Institutions Ranking, DUT is the eleventh-best medical school in South Africa, and no. 3948 in the world
• You can click this link to get more info on the Faculty of Health Sciences at DUT

🔟 Sefako Makgato Health Science University (FKA MEDUNSA)

• According to the SCImago Institutions Ranking, SMU is the twelfth-best medical school in South Africa, and no. 4064 in the world
• Applications for 2024 closed on the 28th of July, 2023
• You can click this link to get the university prospectus to get more info about the university and find out the requirements for every course

Remember to also submit all the documents needed for your application. These are usually a copy of your ID, a copy of your parent/guardian’s ID, and grade your 11 results. Some universities will ask for other documents too, so make sure you do your research.

We hope this helps you with your 2024 university applications. We will update this page with any new information regarding application dates as soon as it is release by these universities.

Bonus: Universities with Health Sciences Faculties

These universities do not offer an MBChB degree, but do have a Faculty of Health Sciences where degrees in the medical field are offered.

University of South Africa (UNISA)

• According to the SCImago Institutions Ranking, UNISA is the tenth-best medical school in South Africa, and no. 3934 in the world
• You can click this link to get more info on the Department of Health Sciences at UNISA

University of Johannesburg

• According to the SCImago Institutions Ranking, UJ is the ninth-best medical school in South Africa, and no. 3502 in the world
• You can click this link to get more info on the Faculty of Health Sciences at UJ

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